Audi A6 Maintenance and Repair

Comments

Hey Chandler661!You must have a really large set of tools to do all that work.Brake bleeding, one might think is an easy thing but, with ABS and ESP traction controls you may need a special bleeder to get all the air out. I don' t have any pic's of front strut assembly but Audi has info on both. You don't sound like your interested in going to the dealer so I would say, use Audi Erwin.Com USA.There flat rate is hourly, you pay in advance, Approx.$8.00/hr. Get your chassis number from the Vehicle, year model etc. register on there web page and locate the documents, diagrams, etc. you need to do both jobs. They even have info on the correct tools needed to do the job.But if "Your Mechanic" did the front end work, why don't you just take it back to him, or does he not guarantee his work.Hope this helpsBest regardsJKAudiA6 :shades:

Allmet33!Audi recalls are listed on the Audi Web page. You simply ID your Vehicle with VIN Number and they will tell you if there are any recalls for your model. No need to wait for the letter or go to the dealer.Check your Mfg. date of your vehicle, if it's pre-July 2004 it has a timing belt if it's after July 04 then it has a Chain driven Cam Shaft system. I posted a DATA sheet to this web page for the 2005 A6.Best regardsJKAudiA6 :shades:

Yes, I found out after learning of the recall. I googled it and the Audi website popped up and asked for my VIN, which once I put it in...informed me that my car was covered by the recall.

I didn't wait for the letter, as a matter of fact...the website told me the letter wouldn't come out until June. It just so happened after I called the Audi dealer to set the appointment, the letter showed up the next day...a funny coincidence.

I will look at the build date of my A6 and see what it should be. The guy I took it to for all the work seems to already know it has a timing belt as he informed me that it would need to be changed.

On my way to work yesterday I noticed my turn signals weren't working. I checked the fuse, was ok. Later I realized my headlights, windshield wipers, heat and AC weren't working either. I contacted my mechanic but haven't heard from him yet. Its a 2003 A6 2.7T with 115,000 miles. Any thoughts?

Yes it has been resolved, but not in the way we hoped. After hours and days of racking our brains on this issue, we finally removed the transmission and took it in to be checked. Low and behold - the problem revolves around a piss poor design in the transmission. It is a COMMON problem with Audi Quatro and VW Passat, or whichever vehicles have this transmission. If you EVER get stuck in snow the VERY LAST THING YOU WANT TO DO is go from reverse to 1st or vice versa trying to rock the car. This is automatic death for your transmission. This process will SHATTER the 1st gear drum or bell - then you are SOL. The transmission guy we took it to told us this piece alone costs him $1,100 alone. These cars are fair weather areas only - even though they are all wheel drive. This is also the reason people can't find used transmissions.This should be a recall for poor design. We would have thought Audi would have tested this before putting the transmissions in their cars, but then again it's the all mighty $$$. If you happen to screw up the transmission, you have to fix the transmission to get rid of the car (approximately $3,500 or more), or you are stuck with a giant paperweight in your driveway.Never again will we buy an Audi. Buyers of Audi's beware.

i'am looking at a 2001 audi a6 2.7t car looks beautiful but has 148000 . do you think that would be a good buy? the car is being sold 4500 but have gotten him down to 3800.just being cautious with my money cause times is hard.

AlnmaeReplacing your "OLD Noisy Lifters" with "USED"Lifter's does not make sense.New lifters would be the simple answer if it were that easy.Things you should consider before you start out:How many miles has the car been driven?What kind of Motor Oil are you using, Mineral based or Synthetic?How many lifters 12 or 24, Hydraulic or Solid?Are they self adjusting?Replacing lifters usually means removing Camshafts, not for the faint of heart.Lifters plus labor will cost $1000 or more.

If your sure it's a single lifter then I would do the following:a. Compression check to see if all the cylinders are up to snuff, based on Veh.Mileage.b. Check for Sludge build-up in the upper part of the motor, Valve cover and camshaft area.c. Is the motor using more than one Qtr of oil/1000 Miles of driving?d. Is the motor showing signs of overheating? e. Check the spark plugs for carbon build-up or oil residue indicating a pure burn process.If all these checks are within reasonable tolerance for the given mileage of the vehicle then:Do yourself, or have done, a Motor flush with a reputable shop.You don't drive the car during this process and follow the instructions on the can.This takes about 30 minutes after which the motor Oil and filter must be replaced.The Oil & filter replacement must be done while the motor is still @ operating temperature. If your vehicle is high Mileage and depending on the climate conditions where you live and drive you should use the appropriate Viscosity rated Oil;IE, 5/40;10/40 etc. The Link below will help you choose the one you need.VW/Audi Oil codes:http://www.audiusa.com/etc/medialib/cms4imp/audi2/aoa/company/aoa-specific.Par.0- 023.File.pdfReplace your Mineral based oil with full Synthetic oil and add a can of valve lifter cleaner/lubricant; IE, Liqui Moly or other brand.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m8RiWe8vNU

The following is my opinion based on my experience with my 2002 Audi, my friend's experience with their Audis and participation on this board (as well as others). If you are a novice mechanic and/or don't know much about Audi's, stay far away from this car. They are just too expensive to repair and the most odd things go wrong with them.

The most common appear to be problems with the transmission, power steering pumps, electrical system, etc. When I wrote Audi of America that every year I need to budget 2k just to fix problems with my 2002 Audi A6 (that only has 60k miles on it), I got several 'I am sorry sir....but you bought the piece of crap'. My wife's RX300 with 120k miles has about 1/4 of the repair cost as my Audi. I kick myself all the time for not buying the GS300 (that was the model name at that time).

Anyway...I cannot, in good conscience, every recommend an Audi from the early part of 2000's. I have read that once the car was redesigned (again)...2004/5 maybe...they fixed all the problems that were known in the earlier models. So, 3800 for a car that is gonna cost ya at least 1k per year to fix (even more given it has 140k miles on it), is not a good buy...in my opinion.

Extremely high maintenance automobile with very high repair and parts costs. A bad choice, IMO, for anyone who is watching their budget. This would be more of a 2nd/hobby car for someone who could put aside at least $150/month for repairs over the course of a few years. This would not include gas, insurance, and normal expendable parts that all cars use.

Could you PLEASE tell me where the name/address of the place in Springfield where you serviced your A6? I'm in Southern MD and need all of the repairs that you needed except for the turn signal, plus a few more. CV boot is going and I'm not trying to pay dealer another $500 to replace.

Hi dalia1,For starters you may want to go to "Erwin.com" for Audi America buy an hours worth of time and research your "Locked in Park" problem there.If your 95 has a Locking theft system then it gets a bit complicated and could be a number of thing.As a comparison only: Here's what I hear when I start my 2005 A6 Quattro with anti-theft system and Tiptronic Automatic Trans:a. Upon inserting the ignition key and turning to start position with foot on the brakeand transmission in park. 1. First a click under the dash which releases the steering column lock.2. The motor starts.3. Then I can change the Transmission to Reverse.Note: On mine there is a switch under the center consoled which blocks the ignition from starting "IF the Park lever is not all the way forward in Park Position."So if you follow the same procedure to start your car, then it would make sense the other switch under the brake pedal is for the "Anti Theft System". If you have an owners manual look up the section regarding towing the vehicle and the related procedures. There may also be a section related to resetting the Electrical systems in your car by disconnecting the battery cable.But my first choice would be ERWIN.COM.

Hi, So sorry it took so long to get back to you but I was on vacation.If you have not already taken car of your brake bleeding I would suggest going toErwin.com Audi America. Buy an hours worth of time and get the brake bleeding procedure and diagrams directly from them.You need your VIN Number (Veh.ID) to correctly ID your vehicle.They will have all the diagrams you need.Good Luck

I've been doing some research since reading a number of Posts on the Audi Maintenance section, in particular about Transmission problems and ATF Oil changes.Just a short note to some, who have, no question had some bad experiences which resulted in bashing Audi, or some other model automobile. First let me say, that in most if not all cases, Auto Manufactures "DO NOT" manufacture all the components on vehicles which they build. Today's vehicles have literally thousands of parts the greater portion of which are build by third party companies who specialize in a particular areas. The Vehicle manufacture provides those companies with specifications or tolerances in most if not all cases. That being said, I've included links to a Company called ZF Group, a German company which builds transmission along with several other components for vehicles of different types. ZF is a world wide organization, among those, the North America Division which has Manufacturing and rebuilding plants as well as a service chain which repairs and services there products. What this means, if I read it correctly is, they are independent of Audi dealerships which means that those who drive a Audi or other vehicle with a ZF transmission or other ZF product have an option for repair. So here are the list of transmissions and vehicles for which they were buildincluding a list of recommended Automatic and Manual Transmission OILS (ATF)that are recommended by ZF. Please note that within the ATF list there are recommendations as to which ATF should be used and that "Failure to use the proper ATF Fluid can very well lead to Transmission failure". Finally, that even though ZF has it's own ATF Synth Oil which extends the servicing intervals of OIL changes they still recommend ATF OIL Changes.http://www.zf.com/na/zfXmlServlet?resultUrl=/na/content/en/north_america/corpora- te_na/products_services_na/product_overview_na/ProductContentPage.jsp&sessionAtt- ribute=xmlRoot&serviceUrl=http://appsprod01.zf.com/zf.productDataBase/service/ap- plicationLayerSelect&applicationID=12288&applicationGroupID=&productTechnicID=12- 141&productGroupID=17902&productFormID=&productTypeID=316700&languageISOCode=EN&- businessUnitShortcut=&divisionShortcut=#menuArea

I was considering buying an A 6 until I started reading about their mechanical problems, at least the older models, and weak local service ( live in Northern VA). Anyone care to comment, especially answering (i) are the more recent models, say those after 2007, better and less prone to mechanical problems (as Mercedes seems to be) than the older ones, and (ii) where can exceptional Audi warranty and later service be found -- if anywhere?

I had a 2006 A6 4.2 Canyon Red Paint Job with 98% of all option , i loved that car the handling and performance and really gas mileage was great , And Then about a year and half into my lease i am not sure of miles but had to be in lows 20,000 miles i thinking it went south , started with fuel gauge just going from fuel level to empty , GPS freezing up the icon not moving on map as the car was traveling , so i took it in to my dealer in western part of baltimore county and thinking all issues where taken care of and few days went by when i am on belt way and it blew extreme heat out the a/c vents so hot i had to turn it off you could not touch the left side of steering wheel or turn signal , back and forth to dealer this issue not corrected i got a thermomator it was blowing 180 degrees at a snap of a finger , and then fuel gauge gps and other small stuff was happening radio would go to full volume it was having it seems a electrical melt down , finally dealer contacted audi to get a tech to come , well 45 days till that happen my car sat , i could not drive it , the customer care people must read a script i think there is no help there the customer rep for audi would not call me till it got to a very heated moment at dealer and on phone . i finally met him in late july or first of august 2007, this all started at end of march i think it was August till finally got audi to take the car back. truly a very difficult and stress full time which it should had not been communication was big failure for audi, the day that happen there was two customer in service having a melt down with service rep over there issues , and i spoke to one ask him about his car , his statement to me was this is my second A6 and it my last , when first one was a lemon i just thought no way this would happen to me two times , so i know it was not just me , and looking at all comments on here i am surprised that any one buys one , and if you do decide to step into audi market buy extended warranty , and make sure that you never leave dealership with paper work showing worked performed and always demand a loaner if it in for warranty no matter if it a quick fix if you ever have to call 800 customer care line start a log , date and time and who you talk to and what about i think the car looks great but quality for money you pay for is not there or at least when i got mine and I even sent a Constructive letter to Audi CEO in Michigan about all my troubles and lack of care i was getting from there rep he did not even have enough courtesy to even send a letter back to say TOUGH , and if dealer says that service is included get copy of what is and for how long and be sure it on there letter head and signed , I had to get Maryland Attorney General office consumer affairs involved to get a result and did . As one audi owner said to me back during my troubles welcome to world of 4 rings hell , good luck

Greetings Dalia1,This may very well be to late but here goes:The Automatic Gear shift lever release is controlled by several devices.1. There is a sensor in the Ignition switch area ID's the Key2a. The Ignition switch is encoded so when you put the key in the switch it knows ifits the correct key for that vehicle.2b. The ignition key is encoded so the ignition switch can ID the Key.3. There is another which which released the Automatic Trans gear shift lever whenitems (1&2 have been done correctly.4. In the center consoled area under the ash tray is a switch which allows you to release the gear shift should the vehicle need to be towed, for example.Hope this helps.jkAudiA6

Hi Gbosley,Well your message is certainly laud and clear, in particular the portions that refer to "Customer Service and being responsive in a timely manner".There are several lessons to be learned for all who read your comments.a. The most important thing about any car purchased is not how fast it is, the paint color or the extras list.b. That when you have a problem with a particular dealer or it's service departmentyou should make a calculated decision to find a more helpful/reliable Certified dealer service department or independent shop.c. When all else fails, in particular when a vehicle is "a young timer" (within warranty& low mileage) do what ever it takes to get results, including the Attorney Generals office.All of that being the case I'm particularly interested in where these vehicles are Mfg'd. I say that because although the emblem indicates "Made In Germany" I'm not so sure they are. I say this because in Germany, where I live, the independentautomotive Magazines, including ADAC (The equivalent of AAA) give Audi the highest reliability ratings. These ratings are based on Customer service feed back and confirmed service statistics for Germany.And more to the point what is "Made in Germany" really mean. Engineered in Germany, built in the USA or Africa or Hungry or Poland??????????????Well you get the point.I don' t know how the fine print reads for extended warranties in the USA but in Germany it's a contract.One year at a timeKilometer dependent, that is as the kilometers increase on the Odometer the amount of extended warranty decreases;ie, 100%/90%/80%.................It is a limited Guarantee based on Kilometers and length of ownership but transferable within that time period. It is service dependent in that owners service booklet must reflect the Mfg's recommended servicing.In general it only covers major components:Drive train excluding normal wear items: (Brake pads, rotors, mufflers,etc.)Electrical and electronics.Finally I would simple tell you that when I had a BMW the rules of the game wereabout the same, and I suspect that most every Vehicle Mfg. will have similar rules.There is an old saying in the Sales profession:"Sell the sizzle not the steak" or in the words of Kenny Rogers (The country Western singer): "You gotta know when to hold'em and know when to fold'em".Hope your in a better position now than when you purchased you last one.Best regardsjkAudiA6 :shades:

willie94 My right catalytic converter now failed in my audi A6 2003 AVK 3.0 After I had 6 ignition coil replaced Thur recall due to 1 ignition coil went bad. Also cam position sensor went out well as my mass air flow exchange the change over barrel broken between Actuator mechanism and timing belt change. In all 3,155.07. I had letter from Audi Oct 09 said not to bring the car in unless the check engine light came on <(MIL-Malfunction Indicator Lamp will illuminate then let us know)=from Audi letter.. This check engine light came on in August 2010, one coil failed, and also my car was shaking so badly too. That's when I got this fixed and now right Catalytic converters has fail.

Hi Willie94: Are you the original owner of this vehicle???If it's a diesel engine and depending on the model (Vehicle year) the catalytic converters in earlier models were not self cleaning;ie, they got dirty after a number of years then have to be replaced. This has since been changed, in that, catalytic converters are now self cleaning. OK.If it's a Gasoline engine, then what kind of motor oil are you using?See an earlier post of mine with a link to a PDF showing all approved motor oils for Audi/VW. I don't mean the brand, I mean, Mineral based or Synthetic? VW/Audi has recommended Motor Oil standards and they should be followed. In particular Mineral based motor oils leave deposits on the "Lumda Sonda" sensor which is usually located in the catalytic converter. Check your owners manual or the Audi Web page for recommendations. Another options would be "The Car Bible" web page @ http://www.carbibles.com/engineoil_bible.html#blackdeath.I don't know what kind of Cam Positioning Device your Audi has but in my previous BMW it was an electronic devise with no moving parts. If it went bad it would seem to me that your engine would have been trashed as all the timing factors related to Valve and piston timing would be non functional. As for the Air Flow meter meter, I've read information, again on the Car Bible, that spraying cleaner fluids, to remove dust, for exampled will level deposits on the hair fine wire causing it to give incorrect readings. Of course the control device for that unit is electronic as well.I'm not familiar with the abreviation "AVK" but if it' means a rebuild engine, who did the work????JKAudiA6 :shades:

My engine light has been on since March of this year! My dealer said it would need to be analyzed for $360. Received the Ignition Coil letter; checked with the Audi website today. It responded that my Vin # was not one of those with the problem. I've just added about 1 quart of oil in the past 1.5 months. I'm thinking it's the engine?I now have 98000+ miles on it and need my 95000 service done. Any hints as to what I should be aware. I know those service fees are exhorbitant and would like to lessen the "bite." Thank you, skiddadle

Hi Skiddadle,1.Engine light on which model A6;ie, Quattro 3.2l, 4.2l, 3.0l Turbo.............The engine type would determine if you have one or two Catalytic Converters.2. If your engine is using more than 1 quart/1000miles and I assume it is because your adding Oil.My Question is what kind of oil have you been using for the last four years or since you've owned the vehicle?3. The "Engine Warning light" will come on for a number of different reasons.If you've been using a low grade gasoline, fuel or oil additives which are not recommended they can contaminate your Lamda Sonda sensor which is mounted directly in or near the catalytic converter/rs.If will answer these three questions then I can be more specific.